Designs by three finalists for new Beethoven concert hall unveiled

Inhabitat reports that three architecture practices have been chosen as finalists for the new concert hall being built to commemorate composer and musician Beethoven’s 250^th birthday in his hometown of Bonn, Germany.

These firms are kadawittfeldarchitektur from Germany, David Chipperfield Architects from the U.K., and Valentiny hvp architecs from Luxembourg. The finalists were chosen over high-profile firms such as Zaha Hadid Architects and Snøhetta.

According to ArchDaily, the concert hall is planned for the banks of Beethoven’s beloved Rhine River. This privately funded project is planned for completion in 2019.

Here’s a peak of the shortlisted designs (more information and renderings can be found at beethoven-festspielhaus.de):

David Chipperfield Architects, U.K.

Statement: “The British architect has proposed a four-story assemblage of cuboidal structures of spun concrete. The two lower structures, with entries to the main concert hall, act as a bridge between the Rhine promenade and the green spaces of the Beethovenhalle.”

Renderings courtesy of Beethoven Festspielhaus

kadawittfeldarchitektur, Germany

Statement: “Working with the elevation difference between the Rhine River and the Beethovenhalle campus above, the Aachen-based architects designed a volume that rises in curvilinear bands to create ? as stated in the architects’ mission statement, “harmony between new hall and its surroundings”. The interior inverts the upward movement of the façade by burrowing the vineyard-form concert hall amphitheater-style into the belly of the complex. Echoes of the substratum layers carry over into the outside area in the form of stairs leading down to the riverfront.”

Renderings courtesy of Beethoven Festspielhaus

Valentiny hvp architects, Luxembourg

Statement: "The Luxemburg-based architects have cast a voluminous wave-shaped structure that opens up to both the riverfront and the city side through vaulting glass fronts. The building’s two main arcs, one much larger than the other, share a roof of overlapping bands of waves that stretch all the way to the ground in a gesture of openness on Beethovenhalle-facing side."

Renderings courtesy of Beethoven Festspielhaus